Buyer’s market near beach

The strong Australian dollar, slowing tourism and anaemic buyer interest are driving heavy discounting of most coastal properties, though a few areas are bucking the trend.

Beach locations across Australia have been underperforming, with the exception of the Illawarra and Hunter regions of NSW and parts of Victoria, RP Data says.

Receiver sales continue to pepper areas such as Port Stephens and Port Macquarie in NSW.

Coronet Bay and Dromana, south-east of Melbourne, are experiencing discounts above 16 per cent on average.

In WA, Wannanup and Geraldton, south and north of Perth respectively, are suffering discounts of about 10 per cent.

“People aren’t moving into [coastal] areas like they were before the global financial crisis, when people were buying holiday homes," RP Data senior analyst Cameron Kusher says.

“It’s seen as a luxury item and people are more conservative now." Prices in many of these regions now seem attractive compared to pre-GFC, he says. However, the pessimism persists and buyers are sitting on the sidelines.

There are a few exceptions. Suburbs with a diverse economic base are likely to attract more growth compared with their tourism-reliant counterparts.